Buzzed by a Butterfly

Don’t let the bright yellow fool you. This frequent flyer is a maverick full of dangerous twists, drops, and turns.

He did a fly by of our backyard and dang near collided with my husband’s 6ft tall flight control tower.

I believe he described it as…..“It looked like a small yellow bird!”

It’s a bird! It’s a plane! No, it’s a rare yellow butterfly. I tracked its origins to being a male Eastern Tiger Swallowtail. It is hard to tell by the photos, but his size is incredible. He was at least three times bigger than the size of regular butterfly. I hear as caterpillars, they are pretty unique too. Mean and green about the size of small snake with eyes. Whoa.

We watched him in awe until he took to the airwaves again. Apparently, we were just a refueling station on his route.

Certainly, it is a rare treat for us to see a butterfly so different from the norm. We have TONS of the orange ones (Monarch), and many tiny-winged friends. But I haven’t seen a “small bird” size butterfly unless I was inside a Butterfly House at the State Fair.

Hey Maverick! Buzz by anytime. We are happy to oblige.

How I Failed my Blog – Part One

I had big plans to post about my daughter’s 19th Birthday. Her LAST teenage year. Her beginning as a mom…..

Fail….Her birthday was May 6th. Luckily, I took a photo.

My next big blog plan was to post about Mother’s Day. I wanted to be all weepy as my daughter is becoming a mother and I am her mother. How I drove to Oklahoma for the day to see MY MOM. Then, spent Sunday with my other mom, Jason’s Mom. And of course to end it with photos of Sydney and me. I handed my camera to Hubby and had him photograph us for her weekly pregnancy photos AND Mother’s Day.

It was sweet.

But it never got posted.

I, also, did not post about my photography groups’ first reception at the Arlington Museum of Art. We had veggies, fruit, cheese, and crackers. Not nearly enough wine…like only an hour’s worth.

I bought this beautiful bouquet from Central Market. We put some of the flowers in little lens cup holders and set them on the table.

It was so incredibly cute. Of course, after the reception I took them home and enjoyed them another week. I think pink gerbers are my very favorite. Now, we have had our second reception. It was not near as crowded as the first, but lots of fun. Did I mention how beautiful all the photographs on the wall are?

How about how I failed at Spring? You know….the season of beautiful blooms. A nature photographer’s haven. Well, I took them. I took TONS of photos at my Momma Sue’s beautiful spring yard on Easter Sunday (I took some of the kids too – heh).

Her hyacinth bloom. A new edition to her potted plant collection.

Her gorgeous wisteria. A yearly favorite as they are always gorgeous and wisty.

The incredible clover. A favorite of the bees every year, and who knew clover was so pretty!

And most importantly, a BLUE BIRD!

I love blue birds.

And this is what I meant to show you on my blog…..but didn’t.

My last blog miss is from my staycation at the end of March. That’s right. I took a whole week and stayed at home….sort of….I kinda went to Oklahoma for my Mom’s birthday and I made lots of other plans and lunches too.

My stay at home week ended up being a busy one, but super fun. And over wayyyyy too fast.

But one of the things I did on my vacation was go to the Fort Worth Zoo. A favorite place of mine. I happened to catch this little Road Runner at feeding time. I must say I have never seen a bird SO proud of his dinner “catch” in my whole life. He pranced around and around to every window showing off his find and shaking his tail feathers.

I’m sure many will think it gross, but I thought it was so funny. Not to mention, he is a beautiful bird, with or without mice in his beak.

That’s all for now. Stay tuned for the second part of How I failed my blog…..

It may include…anniversaries….and more zoo photos.

The BIG News

Since the day she first told me she was pregnant, there have been two questions I desperately wanted to know:

When was the baby due?

Luckily, the first one was very easy to pinpoint from tons of due date calculators online. I did two things right after she told me, called my gyno’s office to make an appointment and googled when her due date would be. September 1st was the winner (and the doctor confirmed). September will be here before we know it. And I must say, that is sooooo close to my birthday, August 23rd. Maybe, just maybe, I will have an early birthday present.

The other burning question at the time…what would it be?

Girl or Boy?

After a loooooonnnng 22 weeks…….I, finally, know the answer.

I must admit…I was Team Pink all they way.

Which to some…is very surprising. I have a girl, two bonus girls, and three of my four dogs are girls. Why in the world would I want to have another girl in the family?

It’s simply really…

The clothes. Oh my gosh, the cute pink, and ruffly clothes.

The sweetness. Well, that is any baby, but tiny pierced ears, dresses, and wearing my mom’s baby ring kind of sweetness.

The fact that my girl gets to know what it is like to have a girl and experience the unbreakable bond of mother and daughter.

Brandon will have his little Daddy’s girl. Which we all know….is something else!

We couldn’t be happier (and would have LOVED having a boy if it had been). It was a win, win either way.

I should have known by the sonogram photo.

The girl has our nose. It is plain as day. And she is not a morning girl (just like me and Sydney). In the ultrasound room, the tech had to wake her up. She was snuggled up snoozing. After banging on Sydney’s belly, she finally rolled over, yawned REAL big, and then started sucking her thumb. Oh yes, that’s our girl all right. Sydney had three pacifiers when she was little. One for each hand and one for her mouth. I sucked my thumb until I started kindergarten.

We got our first girl outfit when Jason came back from dropping the girls off at their Mom’s. A sweet little baby sundress with an adorable white sweater cover. What did I tell ya? Sweetness! I think the girl’s mom is just as excited as we are. Another girl to go with all the girls.

I bought my first baby girl outfit too.

I just couldn’t resist. How perfect is that. The girl will be the most photographed baby EVER. I need to start exercising my shutter finger. She will be here before we know it.

She.

And yes, names are being thrown around, but nothing is decided yet. Apparently, the only names discussed previously were for a boy. Um, Surprise!

I will share all the amazing Gender Reveal party photos soon. We had an outstanding photographer there and it wasn’t me.

She’s Nine…

Today is my oldest stepdaughter’s birthday…she is NINE.

When I met her, she was only four years old.

When I started this blog? Five.

I have watched go from a super smart four-year-old to a dang-near genius nine-year old. The kid is smarter than most people I know. Heh.

She loves every dog in the house for the pets, her iPhone for the music, her sister for the playing, and her Daddy for the hugs.

I’m pretty sure she will grow up to be a Doctor, or an architect.

The Doctor part, because she insisted on performing surgery when she was four. I am still not sure what was wrong with my leg, but when she stabbed it with something sharp and I screamed, “Owwww!” She laughed evilly……

Yep. Doctor.

Or an Architect because that girl can build two-story forts in the living room, and a five-room house with blankets below it. The construction site is a disaster amazing.

She insists on calling me Mom. I am her step-mom…..she knows this. I couldn’t and wouldn’t take her Mom’s place. Her Mom has a kinship with her that can never be replaced. She loves her Mom more than anything. But I know why she does it. I had a step-dad and I HATED the step part. I felt like it took something away from what he was to me. So I get it. I am her mom (step) and I am so proud to be that to her.

This young lady is, no doubt, going to take the world by storm.

She is everything bright, fun, and beautiful and I love her with all my heart.

Happy 9th Birthday to my girl Molly!

In another news, we are frantically preparing for the big Gender Reveal party tomorrow. I can’t believe IN ONE DAY I will know if it is a GrandGirl or a GrandBoy. I am excited beyond belief and busy, oh so busy, getting allllllllll the pink and blue stuff together.

I will definitely post photos!

Hope everyone is doing well.

Unexpected Blessings

When you find a penny face up…

When coffee is brewed before you arise…

When a stranger’s kind smile makes your day…

When someone thanks you, for doing a good job…

When someone hugs you, because you need it…

When someone rejoices with you, because your joy can’t be contained…

From all ends of the spectrum. Blessings are no joke. They sneak up on you and they make you realize how grateful you really are. Truly grateful for all the big and small things life throws your way.

When my very young (but grown) daughter told me she might be pregnant about two months ago…

…I was not angry, upset, or sad for her.

What I felt……..was joy.

I KNOW. Nothing is an accident. People make mistakes, but God doesn’t.

13 For you formed my inward parts;
you knitted me together in my mother’s womb.
14 I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.
15 My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
16 Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them,
the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them. -Psalms 139:13-16

News to share….

Countdown to parenthood a little over FOUR months. Get ready kids. :-)

And here they are…two months after she told me.

Sydney’s belly is really growing fast at this point. We didn’t want to announce it all too soon. Of course, we told family right away, but not the general public/social media avenues.

Til now that is…

Which is why I can share my unexpected blessing with all of you. I am going to be a GRAMMA with a grandchild! OMG!

And honestly? I can’t wait.

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart.” Jeremiah 1:5

Easter Weekend 18 Weeks.

It is just hard to believe my BABY is having a BABY. It took me several weeks to really process that. I am not ready for her to be all grown up and a mommy *cry!*.

But she is going to be…..no matter if I am ready or not.

We are doing weekly photos throughout her pregnancy. This one will be all hooked together like a movie watching her belly grow. I found that on Pinterest, because Pinterest is awesome like that.

Of course, I have BIG photo plans for the baby when he/she gets here. No, we don’t know what it is yet. And yes, we will find out. Apparently gender reveal parties are all the rage these days. Not to mention, Sydney and I went to Buy Buy Baby a few weeks ago, it was our first outing for baby and we had to buy something. As in – yes this is real and we are buying a baby thing – but there were very few non-gender things. We settled for a long-sleeve white onsie. Awh.

We told the little girls tonight. I had no idea how to do it. They are six and eight years old. Smart as little whips, but I think I will leave the birds and the bees talk to their mom. Heh.

I showed them a photo of Sydney at week 18 (above) and then I said, “Do you notice anything?” After a minute or two, one of them said, “Welllllll, her belly looks bigger.” I breathed a sigh of relief and then displayed on my phone the sonogram photo next to Sydney’s belly.

This was taken week 16 and the sonogram photo is at about 8 weeks.

I said, “Do you know what THAT is?”

Surprisingly the six-year old answered. “A BABY!?!”

Hands clapped over mouths in surprise, as they looked at each all wide-eyed. Then Bridget questioned aloud, “Is she married?” It made me smile because that is such a six-year old thing to say. So sweet and innocent, and no, they are not married yet and may not be for a few more years (I hope). I want Sydney to finish college and both of them to have jobs and a home, etc…etc.

Then I told them, “You two are gonna be AUNTS!” Except I pronounced it the North East way Aunt, not Ant like we say here. They have Aunts, we have Ants. I think Bridget declared she didn’t want to be an Aunt. Molly giggled some more, and proclaimed she would be a fourth grade Aunt standing up tall and holding her chest out. I think she will make a very fine Aunt.

But when I told them their Dad was going to be a GRANDPA???

It got REAL.

And they laughed, and laughed, and laughed. Molly had TEARS streaming down her face, because apparently, Daddy being a Grandpa is flippin’ hilarious.

I think we are all still smiling. I hope you are too.

Yes, it’s unexpected, but what a huge blessing.